DAWN BUTLER Prepare for Power

LGBT+ Labour Statement

What have you done in your time as a Member of Parliament and prior to your election to improve the lives of LGBT+ people?

In my life I have always been passionate about my belief that equality is equality, you cannot pick and choose – that means fighting for the rights of everyone in society as if they were our own. It is something I have fought for throughout my life, whether it was when I worked in the trade union movement, where I supported and defended people from all our diverse communities, and in my time in Parliament.

I am proud to have served as the Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities in ’s since 2017, and in this role I have championed LGBT+ rights. I am proud to have played a key role in developing the policies contained in the Women and Equalities section of the Labour manifesto, including the commitment to rolling out PrEP medication across the United Kingdom, taking the LGBT+ homelessness crisis seriously, and respond fast and firmly wherever LGBT+ people face hate crime, violence or persecution at home or internationally.

I also hold the Government to account on a daily basis in Parliament, including pushing for reforms to the Gender Recognition Act, pushing the Government to appoint a dedicated, long-term LGBT+ health advisor covering all aspects of LGBT+ rights, asking the Government to kick Burma out of the Commonwealth for their barbaric anti-LGBT+ laws, while I have also consistently pushed for same-sex marriage to be introducing in Northern Ireland.

It is an incredible honour to have won Ally of the Year at the DIVA Awards 2018, and to have been recognised as one of the Allies of the Year on the Pride Power List 2019, for my work on LGBT+ rights. This means so much to me and as Deputy Leader I am determined to continue to use my voice and actions to support the community.

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@DawnButlerBrent facebook.com/DawnButlerBrent/ As Labour Leader, what is the first change in legislation you would campaign on to improve the lives of LGBT+ people?

I believe that the Gender Recognition Act needs to be reformed and urgently. It is unacceptable that the Government have delayed reforms to the GRA for so long, as I fear it is creating a hostile environment for trans people. Almost half of trans young people in Britain have attempted suicide at least once and 84 per cent have thought about it.

The current process is simply unnecessarily distressing and adds to the burden that the trans community already faces in society with rising levels of hate crime. There are too many barriers in place that stop trans people from getting gender recognition certificates, so the process needs to be de-medicalised to allow for self-identification.

And I am clear that reforming the Gender Recognition Act does not affect access to single-sex services and facilities and that it won’t impact provisions under the Equality Act 2010. I strongly believe that trans men are men and trans women are women, so we must implement the reforms to the GRA as soon as possible to improve the lives of the trans community.

Labour will help save lives not ruin them. As Deputy Leader I will ensure that we champion rights for LGBT+ communities across the UK and reform the Gender Recognition Act.

How will you root out incidences of , biphobia and transphobia alongside all other forms of discrimination in the Labour Party?

I am wholeheartedly committed to a completely independent complaints process for all complaints – ranging from cases of homophobia, biphobia and transphobia to cases of sexual harassment and antisemitism. I firmly believe that this will allow us to take the strong and robust action necessary to eliminate it from our Party. And as Deputy Leader I will not be shy in making clear that if you discriminate against someone – whether it homophobia, biphobia and transphobia, or any other form of discrimination – then you are not welcome in the Labour Party.

But we cannot solely focus on punishment – we must work to ensure that such discrimination does not happen in the first place. That is why, as Deputy Leader, I will ensure that Labour develops comprehensive political education. This Education forms part of my CORE strategy – Campaign, Organise, Recruit, Educate.

This political educational programme will be designed by people with lived experience, with Labour values at the core. It will include training on Transphobia, misogyny, Homophobia – and anti-Semitism, racism against African-Caribbean people (sometimes called Afrophobia) and any other type of bullying and oppression. There will also be mental health and disability awareness training as part of this.

[email protected].@copmar l/ia m07e7n8t.4u6k8 /9 2 08290 7129 0209

@@DMawarnshBaudtleeCrBordeonvt a ffaacebooookk..ccoomm//MDaarwshnaBdueCtleorBdorevnatM/P How would you ensure that an increased number of diverse LGBT+ people are selected to represent the Labour Party at all levels of local, devolved and national elected office?

This is really important because diversity and representation matters. The Labour Party has a proud record when it comes to this, and it is fantastic that we have more female MPs than men and more Black, Asian and minority ethnic MPs than the other parties combined. But we can and must do more when it comes to diversity in all its forms. We must strive to take further action to ensure that the Labour Party – and Parliament – reflects the people it seeks to represent.

[email protected].@copmar l/ia m07e7n8t.4u6k8 /9 2 08290 7129 0209

@@DMawarnshBaudtleeCrBordeonvt a ffaacebooookk..ccoomm//MDaarwshnaBdueCtleorBdorevnatM/P